Never Give Up
by trekkie'227
Summary: Emily is taken by an unsub out for revenge on the BAU and her safe return seems impossible. The team races against the clock to find her before its too late.
1. Chapter 1

**This story will not contain anything that could not be put on the show. There will be no sexual assault of any kind; I will never write anything like that. **

** As always, I just own my ideas. **

**BAU; 11:30 PM**

The office was practically empty by the time Emily headed towards her car. It had been a strenuous week in Los Angeles followed by a large pile of paperwork so she was looking forward to a long, undisturbed sleep. Emily stopped to pull out her keys, grumbling in frustration when she fumbled them and the skidded across the pavement. Her footsteps echoed in in the eerily quite lot as she approached the spot where her keys had landed. The figure lurking in the shadows behind her car chose this moment to lunge at her crouching form. Emily barely had time to turn her head before the butt of his gun smashed into her temple, plunging her into a brief unconsciousness.

When Emily awoke, she found herself in the back of her car. Her hands and feet were tightly bound with thick rope and a dusty rag had been wedged into her mouth. There was a warm trickle of blood dripping down her left cheek. She moaned softly as the motion of the car jostled her throbbing head.

"Good, you're awake," said a gravelly voice. Emily looked up, her stubborn glare locking with the dark green eyes of the man in her car's front seat. She was met with an unsettling smile. Not only did the man look comfortable, but almost excited. Emily tried to start profiling him. Clearly a narcissist; he had knowingly abducted a federal officer right in front of FBI headquarters. This would have needed to be thought out, so he was intelligent and organized.

Emily's thoughts were cut short when the man made a sharp turn, causing her head to collide with the door. She had to squeeze her eyes shut and concentrated on her breathing in an attempt keep the contents of her stomach calm.

When she opened her eyes, she found the man looking back at her again. He spoke, his taunting tone sending an involuntary shutter through Emily's entire body. "I've been waiting a long time for this Emily." His eyes glinted in anticipation causing more bile to rise into Emily's throat. She stared up at the ceiling, silently praying that the team would figure out she was missing.

**BAU; Midnight**

Hotch looked up from his report as Emily finally pulled on her coat and walked through the glass doors. He could hear the faint ding of the elevator in the otherwise silent office. Sighing, he returned to his work. Twenty minutes later, when he was finally finished, Hotch walked through the now deserted parking lot. The light from the building reflected off something on the ground and caught Hotch's eye. He bent down to retrieve it.

It was a phone. He flipped it over and pushed the off button. It lit up and a picture of Emily's cat, Sergio, filled the screen.

Hotch pulled out his phone, punching in Rossi's number. Rossi's exasperated voice answered after the third ring, "I swear to God Hotch, if the next words out of your mouth aren't-"

"Something's happened to Prentiss."

"Well I was going to say 'I've got beer' but-"

"I just found her phone in the parking lot." Hotch's statement was greeted with a moment of stunned silence while Rossi gathered his thoughts. "I'm not going to call anyone yet, she might have just dropped it but we need to look at the security tapes. I'll call her home phone; she should be back by now." Hotch's voice remained stoic as always, though Rossi knew not to trust that. After all, Hotch _had_ called him just to say nothing was wrong.

"I'm sure Garcia is still up. I'll get her to check the tapes," Rossi responded. There was no reason to panic. Hotch was probably just stepping into his roll of overprotective team leader. Once Garcia didn't find anything unusual, he could go back to bed.

Hotch, however, felt only increasing unease when his call to Emily's house went unanswered. He inhaled deeply, allowing the cool night air to fill his lungs, and began to pace. A small dark stain on the pavement a few feet from where he had found Prentiss' cell grabbed his attention. Hotch bent down to examine it with the light from his phone. It was hard to tell in the minimal lighting, but the stain definitely had a rusty tint.

Finally, Rossi's number appeared in the screen and Hotch answered. "Garcia couldn't get a good image, epically without the BAU equipment, but someone attacked her and drove off in her car." Rossi reported. Hotch felt his hand grip the phone tighter in frustration.

"And there's blood on the pavement. We've got to call the team; Agent Prentiss has been taken by an unsub."

**I hope you like it so far! This is my first Criminal Minds story, so please let me know what you think. **


	2. Chapter 2

**Thank you for the positive response! I am trapped at home all day because of the hurricane, so I will have plenty of time to write. **

**BAU; 1:45 Am  
**

It was nearly two AM by the time the whole team was sitting in the conference room. No one knew quite what to expect. Reid dug his palms into his eyes in an attempt to wake himself up while they waited for a report. Finally, Hotch entered. Everyone looked up at him expectantly, waiting to be told why their sleep had been so rudely disturbed. Hotch nodded to Garcia, who pulled up the surveillance video for everyone to see. The team watched in silence as Emily's blurry figure crossed the parking lot, then crouch down to pick up her keys.

Suddenly another shadowy figure jumped out at her. JJ let out an audible gasp as she watched Emily fall to the ground. Garcia looked away, having already seen this once. Everyone else stared in shock as the unsub roughly threw their colleague into the back of her own car and drive away.

Hotch's commanding voice cut through the stunned silence. "Garcia, try to see if you can clean up this image at all, so we can get an ID, and put a BOLO out for Prentiss' car. Morgan, the local police need to be informed; we have a missing officer. We don't have much to go on but we need to start a profile."

Garcia and Morgan hurriedly left the room. Hotch looked around at the remaining profilers. JJ's eyes were sparkling and Reid seemed to be scrutinizing the wall in front of him, though his mind was clearly somewhere else. Rossi was the first to speak. "We need to assume that he was targeting Prentiss."

Hotch nodded once in agreement. "He clearly knew what he was doing. He waited until they were alone, so he knew what he was up against. We need to determine why he chose her and what he wants."

Their brainstorm was interrupted by the rapped clacking of heals outside the door. Garcia burst into the room with Morgan right behind her.

"Did you get an ID already?" JJ asked

"Even I'm not that good. I was trying to clean up the image when someone sent this link to me so I opened it and this popped up." The words tumbled out of Garcia's mouth so fast it was difficult to understand what she had said. She took a deep breath and opened the link.

**Location, Unknown 2:00 AM**

After what seemed like days, the unsub pulled up to a small shabby house. Emily decided not to fight when he pulled her from the car but simply lay still, making it more difficult for the man to carry her dead weight. He swung her over his shoulder and proceeded towards the house in silence. Emily fought to keep her eyes open despite the sharp pain from her head. She looked around as best she could in case she was able to escape. She located an old beige phone on the wall and pair of keys lying on the thick wooden table in the kitchen before the unsub carried her down a steep flight of stairs to the basement.

A single naked bulb lit the entire basement. There were a few small windows cut into the top of the cold cement walls. The unsub walked over to the back wall and dumped Emily onto the floor, causing her vision to blur and her stomach to twist. He took advantage of her temporary immobility to remove her bindings and place a shackle around her ankle attached to the wall by a rusty chain.

By the time the room stopped spinning, the unsub had removed Emily's jacket, leaving her arms bare, and taken her gag off. Emily seized the opportunity to use her voice. "Who the hell are you?"

"Your worst nightmare. Do you remember Alex Tanner?" The man said coldly. Emily didn't speak but her eyes widened slightly. "Yah that's right. Do you remember how you never gave him a chance, how you took the shot before he could drop his gun? He's gone now because of you and your team."

Emily's face remained stony, though her heart was galloping at an alarming rate. Now that he mentioned Alex, she could see the resemblance between the two, the green eyes, sandy hair and stocky build. That case was a long one; they desperately searched for an unsub killing young girls. Emily recalled how they finally found seventeen year old Alex just in time to save his half-sister. "Luis?"

"Oh, look at that you remember now, how nice." Luis' anger was rising at an alarming rate. Emily could see a vein pulsing in her neck and his ears turning a deep shade of red. "Too bad that won't help you any."

Emily concentrated on keeping her voice calm while she looked up at him. "We gave him a chance Luis. He was holding a gun to that girl's head; he didn't give us a choice. Alex-"

"Don't you ever say his name again!" Luis interrupted loudly. He grabbed Emily by her hair and threw her against the wall. "You murdered my baby brother, and now you're gonna pay!"

Emily squished herself against the wall, trying to protect her aching head against another attack. Luis, however, turned and stomped up the stairs. Emily let muscled relax and unclenched her trebling hands. But her relief was short lived as she herd Luis' boots on the steps again. He reappeared a moment later with a tripod and camera.

Luis set up the camera facing Emily, and turned it on. He turned to face it, speaking directly to his audience. "You took someone from me three months ago, now I have something of yours." He stepped to the side, so the lens could capture Emily's image. "You have one chance to find her, which is one more than you gave him. But you've got to hurry." He winked and gave a lopsided smirk.

Luis turned to face Emily, who was still huddled against the wall. He shoved her to the ground and delivered two swift kicks to her stomach. Emily gasped for breathe, trying to ward of the pain. Her eyes watered but she refused to let a single tear fall.

Luis stepped in front of her again, grinning. "Good luck!" he chuckled and switched the camera off.


	3. Chapter 3

**BAU; 3:00 AM**

Morgan was clutching the table so tightly that his hands were growing numb. He could feel heat radiating off of him as he turned to face the rest of the team. Garcia immediately grabbed his attention. She was visibly shaking and wringing her hands. Morgan traversed the distance between them in three large steps and gently guided her to the nearest chair. When he turned back to the rest of the team he saw four pairs of determined eyes.

"We need to treat this like any other case." Hotch said to the team. "We have an unsub out for revenge, saying that the FBI took someone from him. Presumably this loss triggered a psychotic break."

"You know, it is extremely unlikely for a single event to cause such drastic behavior. It is much more likely that our unsub was already unstable, and possibly violent, and this loss pushed him over the edge." Reid informed them

"So we are looking for someone with a history of violence connected to one of our cases. That's really helpful." Morgan retorted, voice rising in irritation. "Come on genius boy, you have to give us something better!"

Reid glared across the table at Morgan. "So tell us your theory then," he challenged.

Morgan stood up suddenly causing his chair to fall backwards. "Your wise-ass remarks aren't going to get us anywhere. Prentiss could be getting tortured right now so you need to cut the crap!"

Hotch stood and faced Morgan. "I understand that you are worried about Prentiss, but under no circumstances may you speak to anyone on the team that way. Go take a walk and cool off." Morgan glared around at all of them and stormed out.

JJ was wriggling in her seat as she watched Morgan leave. She couldn't get the image of Emily out of her head. They had only seen her for a minute but she had glimpsed dried blood on Emily's face and a large bruise spreading over her left temple. JJ could feel her thoughts spinning out of control, panic creeping up in her throat.

Rossi paused at the door when Hotch had dismissed them, noticing that JJ had not followed. She was still sitting rigidly and staring and the glossy table top. Rossi approached cautiously, not wanting to startle the young agent. "Hay," he said gently.

JJ jumped and looked around in surprise. "I'm sorry sir, I was just thinking. I-"

She stopped babbling when Rossi placed his hand on her shoulder. "It's okay." He smiled kindly at her. "Why don't you see if Garcia needs any help identifying the unsub."

"I… yah. Okay." JJ rose from her chair and Rossi turned away, letting her wipe her eyes while he examined the door handle, and then leading the way out of the room.

Hotch watched Morgan pace from his office window. If they couldn't help each other, how could they help Agent Prentiss?

**Luis' basement 3:30 AM**

Emily was shivering. The basement was freezing and without her jacket, she had nothing to protect her from the cold. Her head ached and her stomach throbbed painfully every time she shifted her position. During the time she had been left alone, her mind wandered, wondering if the team had received the message and was looking for her.

Just as she was drifting off to sleep, Luis descended the stairs, hands deep in his pockets and a smirk plastered across his face. He walked over to the corner where Emily was huddled, crouched down, and ran a finger lightly across her jaw. It took every ounce of discipline Emily possessed for her to resist the temptation to attack him. She knew she had to wait for the right moment, and this was not it.

"You ready for round two?" Luis asked smugly. His grin widened when Emily refused to respond, opting to glare at him instead. Luis left Emily's side to turn on the camera. "Hello BAU. It's time for the fun to begin."

**BAU 3:45 AM**

"Um JJ? Guys? Anybody!" Garcia frantically tried to get the teams attention. Rossi, Reid, and JJ soon gathered around her computer screens. Then Hotch and Morgan rushed in.

"What is it baby girl?" Morgan inquired, though he knew what it was.

"I got another link."

**Luis' basement 3:45 AM**

Luis' eyes gleamed in anticipation as he pulled something out of his pocket. Emily could not suppress a short gasp when he opened his fist to reveal the lighter. She tried to fight him off, but got dizzy from the sudden movement. Luis grabbed her right wrist tightly and clicked the lighter. Emily watched as Luis brought the orange flame up to her arm. He hesitated just long enough to look into her dark eyes before pressing the lighter into her pale flesh.

Emily bit down on her lip to hold in the scream. Her entire arm felt as though it was on fire. She tilted her head back and squeezed her eyes shut, willing the pain to go away. Finally, Luis removed the flame. A tingling numbness was spreading outwards from the spot that he had burned. Emily opened her eyes and stared defiantly at Luis. She would not bend to his will. She would not sit here and play the victim.

Emily looked directly into the camera. "Luis Tanner, brother of 17-year-old Alexander Tanner."

"Shut up you bitch!" Luis shouted. He pulled Emily up and wrapped his hands around her throat. He slammed her against the wall as she struggled to take in a breath. Just as the edge of Emily's vision was beginning to fade, he let her go. She crumpled on the ground, gasping and choking. Giving her a sharp kick for good measure, Luis covered the lens of the camera and switched it off.

** Don't worry; I'm planning on having the next chapter ready to post for tomorrow. **


	4. Chapter 4

**BAU, 7:00 AM**

"Three months ago, we investigated an unsub killing red-head girls ages 8-11 in Salt Lake City," Garcia reminded the team. "You cornered Alex Tanner, and Emily shot him before he could kill his half-sister, Lucy." Garcia put a picture of Lucy Everett on the screen. "According to Salt Lake police, twenty seven-year-old Luis Tanner came to claim Alex's body two days later. They had to lock him up over night when he attacked the medical examiner." Lucy's picture was joined by Luis Tanner's mug shot.

"So we're looking for a man out for revenge." Morgan stated. "What was his relationship like with Alex?"

"Well, as you all know, juvi records are sealed. However, your tech goddess," Garcia took a bow, "can work wonders. Luis got into a lot of trouble, and I mean a lot. Theft, vandalism, drugs you name it. He dropped out of school when he was twelve. When he was sixteen, and Alex was six, there mother left them, ran off with a lawyer and a year later Lucy was born. Apparently, there father was an abusive alcoholic and deteriorated when she left."

"And Luis looked out for Alex?" Rossi guessed

"You could put it that way. When Luis was arrested for a DUI, Alex started attacking the girls."

"Alex was the only person he ever cared about, and he thinks Prentiss killed him." Hotch looked around as the team nodded in agreement.

"He told us we have one chance to save her," Morgan pointed out. "Why would he say that?"

Reid was quick to respond. "He's letting us believe we have a chance, giving us false hope. He has no intention of letting us find her."

"We need to be two steps ahead of him. We have to assume he will accelerate his plan now that we know his identity," Hotch said gravely. "What's his endgame?"

JJ spoke up for the first time sense they had received the second video. "He's going to let us get close. He'll let us get close and he'll kill her."

**Luis' basement 8:00 AM**

Emily had been sleeping on and off sense Luis' last attack. The shivers that racked her entire body were accompanied by sharp stabs of pain. If she didn't leave soon, she wouldn't be able to at all. As time crawled by, Emily could feel herself slipping into a pit of hopelessness. She did not like feeling so powerless. All she wanted to do was curl in on herself and give up. It would be so simple. But then she would think of her family back at the BAU. She would recall JJ's blue eyes and Reid's messy brown hair. She thought of her conversations with Morgan about Vonnegut. She even managed a smile when she remembered holding Henry for the first time.

Armed with these warm thoughts, Emily began to plan her escape. The hook that attacked her chain to the wall was thin. As she waited for Luis to return, she pulled at the hook, wiggling it back and forth. Her plan gave her new hope so she was able to ignore the cuff around her ankle rubbing against her skin.

The hook was beginning to loosed but Emily's heart plummeted when she heard Luis descending the steps. Quickly, she slouched against the wall, trying to look only partially conscience. She kept her eyes open slightly so she could watch Luis' thick work boots approach.

He poked her roughly with his foot to make sure she was paying attention. "You better be quite this time, especially if you value all of your fingers." He hissed, pulling out a large kitchen knife and dangled it in front of her face.

Turning away, he raised his voice. "I watched on TV as she shot my brother," he jabbed a finger in Emily's direction. "I couldn't do anything to stop it. You can't imagine what that feels like. Yet." He winked.

Emily struggled until the knife, which he grasp firmly in his right hand, was pressed into her upper arm, the same arm he had burned hours before. She braced herself but refused to look away.

The first incision he made, while painful, was not too deep. The second made her wince slightly. Luis, clearly frustrated with her lack of response, made a third, deeper cut near her shoulder. Emily inhaled sharply and closed her eyes as a wave of nausea overtook her. Two salty tears dripped from her eyelashes before she could stop them. Satisfied, Luis retreated, letting the camera get a good view of the blood running down Emily's arm and staining her violet shirt.

_Breathe. Just breathe._ Emily instructed herself. _In through the nose, out through the mouth. Feel the air expand in your chest. Feel the warmth rush past your lips as you exhale._ Her whole right side felt numb. After a minuet she had the sense to put pressure on the lacerations. When she was able to open her eyes again, Luis had gone.

She tried to drive away the despair, tried to remind herself of the BAU girls nights or poker games on the jet, but the pain was overwhelming. All she could think was _I hope the find me in time. God I hope they find me._

**I hope this chapter wasn't too depressing. I have some idea where this is going and there will be a happy ending. Thank you for your continued support!**


	5. Chapter 5

**Luis' Basement 9:30 AM**

She had had enough. She was tired of being pushed around and used as a pawn so this lunatic could tortured the people she loved. She would not sit around and wait to be rescued. She would not be the sniveling victim, waiting for the big strong men to come and save her. She was Special Agent Emily Prentiss, FBI, and it was time to make Luis Tanner understand who he was messing with.

Emily had been able to stop the bleeding eventually. She had ripped off her sleeve and used her left hand and teeth to tie the cloth tightly around her injured shoulder. Then she had continued tugging at the chain, only taking a break when the entire room appeared to be spinning and the chain was lost in her blurry vision. Finally, the hook gave way. The lack of resistance sent Emily falling backwards in surprise. She dropped the chain which clattered against the cement floor.

Emily froze for a minute, listening for the faintest hint of a footstep, but the only sound was her labored breathing. She slowly got to her feet, hugging her right arm to her chest and using her left to support herself. Clinging to the wall, she made her way around the perimeter of the basement. The room was empty except for a rickety table pushed up against the far wall.

Taking a deep breath, Emily grabbed the end of the chain and made her was over to the table. The surface was thick with dust and grime. Some nails were scattered about the table along with a thin piece of twine and a few yellowing newspapers. Emily picked out two particularly thin nails and pushed them into the large key hole in the cuff at her ankle. She wiggled them around for a bit until the lock clicked. She sighed and rotated her foot, encouraging the blood flow to increase again.

Emily's relief was cut short by the familiar footsteps on the stairs. She looked around desperately for a weapon she could use but found nothing. She bit her lip and turned, preparing for a fist fight. She would scratch out his eyes if she had to because Emily Prentiss was not getting chained up again. Emily Prentiss was leaving. Now.

Luis howled when he reached the bottom step and could not see his prisoner. He spun around, eyes wild, and spotted a tired but determined Emily glaring back at him. He charged at her but Emily side stepped and he crashed into the table.

Emily, with adrenalin pumping through her body, pounced on Luis' back. She pulled at his hair and smashed his head into the table again; causing him to drop the Taser he was carrying. While he recuperated from his collision with the table, Emily nimbly hopped off him, grabbed the Taser, and swung round just in time to jab the weapon into his thick neck. Luis' body convulsed and fell to the floor where he remained, eyes closed.

Emily stumbled back to the wall, gasping. But she couldn't give in to the dizzying pain yet. Pushing herself up, she climbed the stairs (with much assistance from the cracked wooden railing). Immediately, she sought out the phone in the kitchen. It was old, made back when buttons were new and exciting. She punched in a very familiar number and waited, still breathing heavily.

A professional voice answered and Emily let out the breath she had apparently been holding. "Hotch."

**BAU conference room 9:45 AM**

"Hotchner."

"Hotch?" a faint voice replied.

Hotch's eyes lit at the sound. "Emily!" He cried with relief. Five heads shot up, five sets of eyes now locked on the phone in his hand. Hotch regained his usual stoic demeanor before speaking again. "Prentiss, where are you?

"I don't know Hotch. Tanner is unconscious but I don't think he'll stay that way for long." Emily's voice seemed to be getting fainter, her breathing shallower.

Hotch pointed to Garcia, mouthing at her to trace the call, and put the phone on speaker. "Em? Em you're going to be alright. We'll be there soon." JJ said, trying to sound confident despite her shaking hands.

"Hang in there princess." Morgan added.

"Sir, she's on a landline at 12 Parker road. 30 minutes from here, 20 if Morgan's driving." Garcia reported. "Bring our ninja princess."

"Let's go," Hotch said. "Prentiss we're on our way. Stay on the line." The whole team rushed out of the conference room. Rossi and Hotch headed to their offices to get their guns and credentials.

"Hotch I don't know if-" Emily let out a soft half-whimper half-gasp.

"Prentiss? Prentiss!" Hotch yelled.

"Sorry sir. I just- it's- I'm okay." Emily whispered. "Just hurry."

Hotch handed the phone to Rossi who was turning back to join the team. "Prentiss, you've got to hang on." Rossi climbed into the passenger seat in one SUV with Morgan at the wheel. JJ, Reid, and Hotch, once he got outside, took in the other.

Rossi heard another, deeper voice in the background as Morgan pulled out of the parking lot. There was some scuffling and then the other voice yelled, "BITCH!" Emily screamed.

"Prentiss!" Rossi yelled into the phone. He flicked on the siren and Morgan accelerated at an alarming rate, the tires squealing as he swerved to avoid a white Volvo that wasn't quite fast enough.

Something shattered. Prentiss was yelling. Luis was swearing. There was a gunshot. The line went dead.


	6. Chapter 6

**I'm sorry for making you wait (sort of). I had a bit of trouble with this chapter, but I hope you enjoy it!**

**10:10 AM 12 Parker road**

Rossi and Morgan arrived at the dilapidated house first. The SUV had barley stopped moving before two pairs of feet had hit the dusty driveway. They reached the door, guns drawn, as Hotch, JJ, and Reid pulled up. Morgan pulled the door wide open, following Rossi into the dim house. Hotch entered, signaling Reid to continue down the hall as Morgan and Rossi crept up the stairs and JJ peeled off to the left.

Morgan silently climbed the steps on the balls of his feet, aiming his weapon at the shadowy floor above. His heart had gone into overdrive. Though he had been in countless life and death situations, this was different; this was personal. His grip tightened as he remembered Emily's pained gasp on the phone. He could actually feel his body trembling with anger. There was absolutely no way this bastard would walk away from this unscathed. Perhaps without a few fingers and an eye, Morgan decided.

The pair made quick work of the four rooms on the second floor. Three of them looked as though they had been untouched for years. The forth, a small bedroom, was filthy. Fast food wrappers and newspaper clippings littered the mold-colored carpet. Diagrams of the BAU and pictures of everyone on the team, even Garcia, had been plastered over peeling wallpaper. Even Morgan was momentarily immobilized as his family's faces stared blankly back at him.

Morgan's earpiece crackled into life and Hotch's voice pulled him from his temporary trance. "We found Tanner in the basement. He's dead."

Rossi and Morgan descended the stairs and quickly located the basement. The seen that greeted them was gruesome. Luis Tanner was sprawled at the foot of the steps, eyes open and vacant. A large bloodstain blossomed across his lower abdomen and his neck was at a very unnatural angle.

Hotch was standing with his back to them, examining the camera pointed towards the far corner. Reid stood in front of the remains of a wooden table. As Rossi moved to join him, another, softer voice spoke into the agents' ear. "I found her out back. Someone call a medic!"

**10:12 AM, JJ**

JJ saw Morgan and Rossi ascending to the floor above. Hotch and Reid continued forwards, and she turned left into the kitchen. The remains of several dinner plates crunched underneath her feet. She took note of an old telephone that had been hurled at the opposite wall. Through the translucent window above the sink, JJ could see the backyard. The long yellowing grass was covered in a carpet of autumn leaves.

JJ continued out the back door, squinting against the bright light. Cautiously, she walked away from the house. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw what appeared to be a colorful lump pressed against the side of the house. Her heart skipped several beats as she turned and saw that it was Emily, slouched over and unconscious. JJ sprinted over, eyes stinging with salty tears. "Emily? Emily!" She cried, but was not rewarded with a response.

JJ kneeled next to her friend and lightly pressed two fingers to her neck. Emily's pulse was rapid, but a pulse all the same. JJ spoke into her sleeve, informing her teammates that Emily was indeed alive, before trying to see her injuries.

Emily was a mess. The thin piece of cloth around her shoulder was a dark, rusty red. The skin around the deep purple bruise on her temple was off-white. JJ could see an array of bruises on Emily's side through a large rip in her shirt. The side of her face was littered in small scratches, which seemed to be her only open cuts. JJ remembered the broken plates in the kitchen and shuttered.

JJ shifter her body so that Emily was lying down with her head in the blonde's lap. She gently ran her fingers through Emily's fine hair, whispering softly that everything was okay, that it was over.

Reid, Morgan, Rossi, and Hotch rounded the side of the building. They looked in fear at the tear tracks on JJ's face and Emily's limp form. Morgan immediately joined the two women on the ground. He took Emily's small hand in both of his and squeezed it.

Rossi stood back with Reid, who didn't seem to know what to do. They had found their colleague. She was alive and Luis Tanner was not. The pair simply watched JJ and Morgan.

Hotch, who had been a short distance away talking on his phone, joined the rest of the team. "The paramedics are five minutes out," he informed them. "And someone should call Garcia." He looked pointedly at Reid. The youngest agent nodded shakily and pulled out his cell. Everyone else huddled around their friend, waiting for the paramedics to arrive.

Finally, the ambulance pulled up. Two medics rushed over to the small crowd. Morgan stepped back, pulling JJ with him after she refused to move. Soon, Emily had a c-collar on and an IV in one arm. A third paramedic arrived and introduced himself as Owen. He asked about Emily's medical history and if they knew what had happened.

By this time, the whole property was swarming with cops and crime scene techs. Hotch and Rossi had moved away to direct them but the rest of the team stubbornly remained around Emily.

When Emily was being shifted onto the gurney, her eyes began to flutter lazily. JJ, seeing this, rushed forwards to grab her hand. "Hay Em, you're okay," she said soothingly. Emily whimpered and scrunched her eyes shut as she started to shiver.

"What's going on?!" Morgan demanded.

"Her body is going into shock," Reid promptly replied. "She probably has an infection and possibly internal bleeding." He turned to Owen. "Where are you taking her?"

"St. John's Memorial Hospital," he said as Emily was being loaded into the back of the ambulance. After a very brief argument, JJ followed.

"Hotch!" Morgan yelled across the yard. Hotch, who had been conversing with the medical examiner, looked up into Morgan's sad eyes.

Hotch came over saying, "Go. Have Garcia meet you there. Rossi and I will come as soon as we can." Morgan nodded gratefully. He and Reid got into an SUV and followed the ambulance away from the house.

**I hope this wasn't as much of a cliffhanger! I promise that Emily will be fine. Thank you for all those motivating reviews I've been getting (hint hint)!**


	7. Chapter 7

**St. John's 10:30 AM**

Morgan and Reid rushed into the private OR waiting room to find JJ sitting in one of the squishy blue chairs with her head in her hands. Her hair concealed her face, but her shaking shoulders told the two men that she was crying.

Morgan quietly crossed the room and sat down next to her. He rubbed her back gently while she silently sobbed. After a few minutes, she looked up. "I'm sorry Morgan, I just-"

"It's okay JJ. We all feel the same way," he reassured her softly. "What did the Doctors say?"

"Something about internal bleeding and surgery. I don't know I couldn't concentrate." Another tear slipped down her flushed cheeks.

Just then, a very colorful and very distraught Garcia flew through the glass doors. "Derek! What's happening? Where's Em? Is she okay? Did we get him?" Her voice rose with each question until it was a shill shriek.

"She's in surgery right now baby girl," Morgan told her. "That's all we know. But we found Luis. She killed him." He stood up and pulled Garcia into his arms. She stood limply and allowed herself to be hugged.

After about half an hour Reid started to pace. Everyone was silent as the watched him, waiting for any news. Finally, a young doctor came in. Morgan, JJ, and Garcia jumped to their feet and Reid stopped pacing. "I'm Dr. Ellen Park," the woman said sharply. "Is one of you Jenifer Jereau?" JJ stepped forwards. "You're listed as Miss Prentiss' next of kin.

JJ looked around at her friends, startled. "You can tell all of us," she said.

"Miss Prentiss' suffered some internal bleeding which we managed to stop. We stitched the three lacerations on her arm. The burn has been bandaged as well, to decrease the risk of infection. She also suffered two broken ribs and a moderate concussion. However, the operation went smoothly. With rest she should make a full recovery." Dr. Park paused before adding, "She is still sedated, but you can see her as long as you keep quite."

JJ nodded, tears collecting in the corners of her eyes. Emily was going to be okay. Everything would be okay.

The four agents followed Dr. Park out of the waiting room and down the hall. They entered a small room and watched as Dr. Park pulled back the curtain surrounding Emily's bed. She politely retreated, letting the four profilers have some privacy. JJ immediately pulled up a chair next to Emily's head. Morgan and Garcia sat at her other side and Reid, after hesitating, chose to sit next to JJ.

The room was silent; no one had anything to say. They just sat, watching Emily's chest rise and fall. JJ ran her fingers through Emily's hair lovingly. "We found you Em," she whispered. "We're all here now."

A high-pitched ring startled everyone. Morgan quickly grabbed his cell and stepped into the hall. A minute later he returned. "Hotch says we need to get back to the BAU. Straus wants all the paperwork done soon." Morgan glowered, making it quite clear that he didn't give a dam about Straus or paperwork, or anything else for that matter.

"I'm going to stay," JJ said when the others got up to leave. "Someone has to be here in case she wakes up."

Morgan thought of insisting that he would stay as well, but when he looked into JJ's piercing blue eyes, he saw sorrow and fear. He knew she was really asking to be alone, for an opportunity to collect her thoughts. So he nodded. "Call us," he said. Garcia and Reid followed him out of the room.

JJ turned back to Emily, picking up one of her clammy hands. She held it loosely in both of hers, rubbing soft circles into Emily's palm. She watched Emily's peaceful form and allowed all the fear, all the sadness from the past twelve hours to catch up with her.

With no more tears left to cry, JJ focused on whispering comforting words to Emily. "I love you Em," JJ confessed to the sleeping brunette. "I always have and I always will."

**This story is wrapping up but I plan to write a sequel as well, focusing on Emily's recovery. And yes, that last paragraph is hinting at what you think it is, though it won't play a significant part in the sequel (unless my faithful readers want it too…)**


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